ola mis muy queridos señores y señoras, frijoles y frijolas, compañeros y compañeras, estudiantes, profesores, intelectuales, payasos, trabajadores, organizadors, artistas, musicos, pues, en fin, everyone who is smart enough to visit one of the most awesome websites ever. You’re Tia Tenopia here, doing a little bragging, y porque no?

This week, in anticipation of Memorial Day,  we are paying homage to the brave men and women who defend our country. While many of us, your Tia included, wish we didn’t have our young Latino men out in Iraq and Afghanistan–we need them here as soldados in the struggle for education and equality in the barrio! But, of course, they are there. And we feel the special need to give them a very heartfelt “Gracias.” For all of their sacrifices.  We are showcasing this week, winners of the Annual Voces Oral History Editing Contest out of the University of Texas at Austin, Journalism Department.

In case you don’t know, since 1999 Dr. Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez (check her profile from last week’s video interview) has been interviewing Latino veterans (on video) from World War II, Korea and Viet Nam. Every year she sponsors an editing contest where students from UT Austin can edit a five-minute documentary based on one of the veterans she has interviewed. This year Latinopia is proud to showcase the top three videos. Third place went to Soñia Melendez for her documentary on Col. Enrique Cervantes. Jordan Kerfeld won Second Prize with his documentary on fighter pilot Leonard Fuentes. And Rosa Elena Pruneda won First prize for her documentary on pioneering Puerto Rican WAC Carmen Contreras Bozak. Judges for the competition included filmmaker Nancy De Los Santos, Jesús Treviño and Houston-based documentary filmmaker Roland Hartzog. Check out these cool, inspiring and accomplished videos!

Also this week we bring you yet another adventure with Arnie and Porfi by acclaimed cartoonist Sergio Hernandez as well as a new thoughtful blog by that Thinking Latina herself, Sara Ines Calderón.  Dan Guerrero is still away but we bring in his place a guest blogger, that wacky ZombieMex himself Lazaro de La Tierra. Check out all these great features this week on Latinopia.com!